A Rewritten Eternity Code
by AnnaCromwell
Summary: An AU of TEC.. Happens after TLG. Possible ArtemisxOC. Hope you like it.


He and Butler waited for his lunch and Jon Spiro to arrive. Even though it was Butler just getting hyperactive about danger here, he still felt that their people couldn't have been here before Butler had set up his security cameras. After all, what harm could a couple of civilians, which include an old lady, a 16-year old & couple others cause? He too was a sixteen year old, only a special case. Artemis looked around in an effort to gather new information. He looked at the table where the girl & her bodyguard female were seated. The girl wore a white crêpe dress, ballet flats, a Cartier watch & was speaking with an Irish accent. The lady was undoubtedly her bodyguard for her pocket showed a seemingly common but unmistakable bulge of a mini Glock. She replied in a manner that could've passed him and her for twins.

"Would you like to view the menu?" waitress asked.

"Sure," she replied. The waitress handed her a menu she'd fist given to me. She waited for the girl to order.

"Hmm, is this the 'teenager' menu?" she asked.

"Yes Ma'am," the waitress replied.

"Where are these menus printed?"

"What, Ma'am?" the waitress asked; she looked flummoxed.

"The menu's been printed so well that it looks more palatable than the items on. If you cannot serve me anything else apart from this, then I had better ask for a glass of sparkling water with a twist of lemon & the stipulated vanilla ice cream with a brownie, or is water & brownie not served to teenagers?" she replied. Her bodyguard shook her head in exasperation, looking at the girl.

"What would you like to order, Madame?" the waitress asked again, uncertain, hesitant edge to her voice

"I would like to order tuna, pan-seared on fresh iceberg lettuce, absolutely no potatoes or tomatoes, with a sprinkle of vinaigrette; sparkling Irish spring water with a hint of lemon. Dessert would be strawberry parfait." Artemis smiled. Someone like him after all. The waitress shot a look at him, saw the smile, then looked at her & asked her more.

"Are you waiting for someone, Madame?"

"Yes."

"A young man?"

"Does he have jet-black hair & sapphire eyes?" she asked. How did she know him? Artemis thought.

"Yes; sitting right there, in fact."

"Thank you," she replied with a smile. She walked up to him, a brilliant smile on her face.

"Artemis Fowl II," she said, then shook his hand. "Annabeth Cromwell."

"Pleased to meet you, Ms. Cromwell. How do you know me?" he asked her.

"Long story," she said & sat down beside him, bodyguard with Butler. "I had the notion that you're here for Spiro."

"I am. For Jon Spiro."

"Then leave now. He's dangerous, Fowl. Your bodyguard knows how much."

"May I know why?"

"He's a wanted criminal."

"He is a businessman."

"We both know whom he consorts with. You know what it has to do with you."

"That has nothing to do with me."

"Seeing the fact that you're ignoring the urgency in my tone, I leave you to find that out," she said, then went back. She kept an eye on him, giving a look which clearly meant that she'd been meaning her words all along.

"She's a ploy, Butler," Artemis said.

"She isn't," he replied. "I've seen her before, trust me; she's one who's absolutely on right the side of law. She's here for Spiro." Just then Spiro entered, thin as a javelin and just as tanned. Artemis rose to greet his associate. "Mister Spiro, welcome."

"Hey, little Artemis Fowl. How the hell are you?" Artemis shook the man's hand. His jewelry jangled like a rattlesnake's tail. "I am well. Glad you could come." Spiro took a chair.

"Artemis Fowl calls with a proposition: I would've walked across broken glass to be here." The bodyguards appraised each other openly. Apart from their bulk, they were opposites. Butler was the epitome of understated efficiency. Black suit, shaven head, as inconspicuous as it was possible to be at almost seven feet tall. The newcomer had bleached blond hair, a cut-off T-shirt and silver pirate rings in both ears. This was not a man who wanted to be forgotten, or ignored. The young lady kept her eye on the party, studying one person in particular; Jon Spiro. Leave, she mouthed to Artemis. He shook his head & went ahead, while Jon Spiro looked curiously at the two.

"Girlfriend?" he asked with a wink. "Pretty one, if she's yours. Where did you two meet? Let me guess, some science convention."

"She is not my girlfriend; I don't even know her. So shall we, Jon, or are you here to discuss how my love life progresses?" Artemis said. He looked a bit irate after Spiro's rant. Girlfriend my foot, he thought. And I can take care of myself; she is no one to be worried about that.

"Hey don't be offended, fella. It's just that I know all about her. That gal is one helluva teenager. Kinda like you," he said. Artemis rolled his eyes; like me is the last thing a teenager can be, he mentally said.

He began showcasing the C Cube to him. Spiro looked impressed.

"Almost. One last test. I have a feeling that the government is monitoring me. Could you check it out?"

Artemis thought for a moment, then addressed the red box again. "Cube, do you read any surveillance beams concentrated on this building?" The machine whirred for a moment. "The strongest ion beam is eighty kilometers due west, emanating from US satellite code number ST1132P. Registered to the Central Intelligence Agency. Estimated time of arrival, eight minutes. There are also several LEP probes connected-" when Fowl pressed the mute button. The girl, who'd been immersed in her meal, took a quick look at Artemis, eyes wide with alarm. It seemed as if she knew the LEP and the People. "LEP," he heard her say. He thought of that for a moment, and then reverted his attention back to Spiro.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" he asked him again.

"I said, how much for the box?" Spiro replied.

"Firstly, it's a Cube,"' corrected Artemis. "And secondly, it's not for sale."

Jon Spiro took a deep, shuddering breath. "Not for sale? You brought me across the Atlantic to show me something you're not going to sell me? What's going on here?" he said, looking around. "I see now."

"What?" Artemis asked.

"Seems like the Fowls have gone legit."

"We are."

"No; you guys are consorting with government agencies."

"Are not."

"Are; why would Alexander Cromwell's daughter be here then?" he said. He knew Alexander Cromwell was the chief of Interpol. His daughter then would be the young lady behind them. Suddenly all her words made sense. "Get the girl," he said & suddenly Blunt took her shoulder, yanked her around, and, putting a knife on neck, brought her to Spiro. Her bodyguard & Butler stood still, unable to react. Their principals were in danger.

"Release her," Spiro said, pushing her back to her bodyguard. She gave Artemis the look that said 'you spoilt all my planning, idiot'. "This is too good. I get both thorns in my way out today with a single pull," he said. Her bodyguard inched ahead with her hand on her gun.

"Mister Spiro. Don't try to bluff. Blunt may be big, but I'll snap him like a twig. Then there's nobody between me and you. And take my word for it, you don't want that," Butler said.

Spiro's smile spread across his nicotine stained teeth like a treacle smear. "Oh, I wouldn't say there's nobody between us."

It all happened in a heartbeat. Spiro clicked his fingers & every single customer in En Fin drew a weapon from inside his or her coat. That was when she looked scared and gulped seeing the scene.

"Mister Spiro. You can't be serious. We are in a public place, surrounded by civilians. Your man cannot hope to compete with Butler. If you persist with these ludicrous threats, I will be forced to withdraw my offer, and will release the Cube immediately," Artemis said, trying to reason with them. Butler put a hand on his mouth in an effort to shut him up.

"These people are beyond reason, Artemis," he told him.

"We can try," Annabeth said. Irina shook her head. "No; Spiro's men can't be."

"Don't worry. All will be fine," Butler said. "Richard of York gave battle in vain," he said, enunciating clearly. That was when Annabeth realized what was happening in there. She gave Artemis an alarmed look & he simply nodded, an unspoken conversation between the two. LEP grenades? She mouthed. Yes, he said.

"Rainbow," the old lady said, & they only had time to slacken their jaws when the grenade exploded, shattering several jaws and causing a lot more to become disoriented. The two were safe due to the quick action of their bodyguards. "You two, head to somewhere out of this room," Irina told Annabeth.

"Fine; you & Butler handle Blunt. I'll take this idiot to somewhere safe," she said, drawing a scathing reply from Artemis.

"Watch whom you call an idiot, Ms. Cromwell," he said.

"You are an idiot. Had you left, we wouldn't have been in this muddle and the team would've reached to catch hold of Spiro. But no, some people don't just have to listen," she snapped back.

"What team?"

"Hark! The great Artemis Fowl still hasn't found out who I am!" she sarcastically retorted.

"What team? And who exactly are you?" he asked again. Annabeth groaned.

"I'm Annabeth Cromwell, daughter of the Chief of Interpol. The team was a set of men I was bringing in to get Spiro. I needed you out of the way."

"Why? I'm just a civilian," he said, and Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"Yeah right; a civilian. You're one of the most wanted on our list. They've struck gold if they would have found you."

"Then why don't you catch me now? I'm in the most vulnerable state I can ever be," Artemis said.

"I need you for a special purpose, which is why you're not at Vienna right now, you intellectual narcissist."

"I have a right to be; I'm the only one with a 210 IQ," he said.

"You are, because I am the only one with a 212 IQ," she replied. Artemis gaped at the girl in front of him. "Shocked? You should be."

"No way," he said.

"Yes way; but right now we don't have time for this. Come along," she said, waiting for him to move. "Come!" she said, taking his wrist & exiting from the kitchen door.

"You know, you really shouldn't have done this," Artemis commented.

"Done what?" she asked him.

"This; leaving our bodyguards behind," he replied.

"You'll see why. Pass me the cutlery trolley," she said, and Artemis slid the huge trolley in her direction. "Knife," she said & he handed one to her. A man in a chef's outfit headed for the two. She smiled at Artemis.

"Watch," she said, & simply took the knife & threw it, pinning him by the collar to the wall. She took 2 more knives & threw them, pinning him by the wall completely. Artemis stood with a shocked expression.

"How was that?" she asked him with a smirk.

"Can you do that again? We need it," he replied, pointing to a couple of waiters. "My pleasure," she replied, and did the same, this time with more finesse. There was no one left now. They heard a gun being fired. The two ran out to the main restaurant, where Artemis' bodyguard Butler had been shot by Blunt. Annabeth put a hand on her mouth to hide the horror on her face, and Artemis simply stood, unresponsive. He was unable to believe his eyes.

"What do we do now?" Annabeth whispered.

"Cryogenics," Artemis said, voice hollow.

"How?" she asked. Realization dawned on her pretty soon, for before Artemis could react, she and Irina began to lift the Eurasian. "The freezers," she told Irina when they'd put Butler on a tray. They quickly wheeled him, put him in the freezers & on Artemis' words, headed Harrods before they left for Harley Street.

"Scotland Yard will be there soon," Annabeth said as they sat at the table, her sipping sparkling water with lemon & Artemis with Earl Grey tea.

"I know. That will be taken care of. Justin Barre will take care of it." Justin Barre was an old friend of Butler who was now Detective Inspector of the Scotland Yard. Artemis instructed him to not let his men go to the freezer in the kitchen of En Fin.

"Fine. Tell the big man now that we're quits," Barre said.

"I will tell him, Detective Inspector," Artemis said. Annabeth was looking at him with sympathy and understanding in her eyes. "Butler saved my life once. I owe him this," she said.

"When?" Artemis asked.

"I was very small, and was once kidnapped by a couple of mafia men for a huge ransom. Butler was with MI6 then. I'm the only child of my parents and they're forever indebted to Butler, who saved a 4-year old toddler at a time when her father at Interpol was helpless. I owe my life to him."

"I wonder if he remembers this," Artemis said, remembering what Butler'd said about Annabeth - _she's one who's absolutely on right the side of law. _It seemed like he was right about her, for the sixteen year old seemed as if the best thing she could do at the moment was put Spiro behind bars. I am the reason for all of this, she thought. Had I not made the plan to get Spiro caught red-handed in dealings where his links to the Mob & Mafia would be exposed, Butler would've never been in this situation. It's my entire fault; just because Father is on death's bed because of Spiro, didn't mean I get someone else in the same situation, she berated herself. Artemis too sense something else was troubling the young lady, besides Irina, who, in fact, knew more than Annabeth had an idea of. "Let's leave for Harley St. I know a woman who can do the job for us," Artemis said, trying to get a better atmosphere surrounding the trio's moods. It had the desired effect as Annabeth immediately got up to leave.

Dr. Constance Lane did the required things for them and Artemis called in Holly Short for the main job - healing. While they waited for Holly, the two shared a conversation, leaning by the van.

"So, Ms. Cromwell," Artemis started.

"Annabeth," she corrected him.

"So Annabeth, tell me something; how do you know the People?"

"Well, I encountered them after reading up on the Web," she started and then told Artemis all about it.

"So you know Foaly before he knew me," Artemis said; she nodded.

"I did. I even knew about you long back."

"He never told me about you, never even gave a mention of a second genius, in fact."

"I told him not to," she replied.

"Why?"

"I tried to introduce myself to you many times, but a fairy calamity came in between every time. I couldn't help in the Berserker Incident because we were encountering a different crisis at Interpol."

"Oh. Pity I didn't meet you before; a lot of problems could've been averted with the help of two genii."

"True. Tell me, Artemis, is money as important as family? I feel that it surely is important, and if one uses their intelligence to generate it, there isn't any harm in it, but not at the cost of family." That was where Artemis got stuck. For him, the family motto was his goal - "_Aurum potestas est._" But today, a sentence from a person of his level left him in a quagmire. Was money at the cost of family feasible? Was he really that heartless? One encounter, as of the age of 13 with Spiro was not enough to convince him, so it seemed. I really have done a wrong thing, he thought. Spiro was mind-wiped so he'd have no idea of their previous encounter, but he did. The C Cube, built on a platform obsolete for fairies, but revolutionary for humans, was costing a bomb to him; not just in the danger he put the fairy race at, but at the cost his family and he would have to pay if he failed. He'd been nagged by that fact all along, but he'd suppressed his conscience all along. She had done what he didn't want - resurrected his conscience. And she was right.

"It's not; I made a mistake, Annabeth. By offering the C Cube to Spiro again, I made a massive mistake. We may have altered his thoughts and thinking, but we haven't altered his nature. He still is the same vile creature he was, and will be. I have to get the Cube & Butler back."

"You have reaffirmed my belief in you today, Artemis. I thought you were a semi-reformed criminal, who'd be swayed by temptation with ease. You've been swayed today, but your conscience has at least made you stronger now, so that this never happens again."

"Yes. I have to stop being so selfish and begin thinking for family once."

"I wish my father understood this."

"What happened?"

"My father, courtesy the Mob in Chicago, is in a hospital in Dublin. I'd told him that this could be handled by the other officers, but he wanted to get the Mob himself. Personally. Look where that got him. He's battling for his life in Dublin," she said, face downcast.

"Oh. I'm sorry." There was silence after that.

Holly came and healed Butler, this time the healing doing a better effect on him, bolstering his body in such a way that he'd grown younger by a few years. "Thank Frond for magic boosters, not that I needed one now," a beaten Holly said.

"When will you learn, Artemis?" she said.

"I'm sorry," he replied.

"You better be. Who is she, by the way?" Holly said, pointing to Annabeth. I hope this isn't another genius with the knowledge of the People, thought Holly. Frond, please not another genius.

"Annabeth Cromwell. A genius who knows about the people," Artemis told Holly, who deeply inhaled and exhaled. "Annabeth is here?" Foaly asked.

"Yes, Foaly," Artemis replied.

"Long time no see. We have not spoken at all after the Berserker tragedy was averted," he said.

"OK. Another genius," she slowly said. Annabeth didn't reply, for she was on the phone with someone. The phone dropped from her hands, face all devoid of colour. "No," she whispered. "No way; this can't happen," she said, voice shakier with every word. "Irina, prepare the Jet. We'll be leaving right now for Dublin," she told her bodyguard, voice hollow.

"What happened?" Artemis asked, slightly perturbed.

"I have to leave," she said.

"We're leaving for Dublin too. Come along," he said, then led the girl to the waiting Fowl Learjet near Heathrow airport. They reached Dublin and once Butler had been safely kept at home with Juliet being called for assistance of her brother, they left for Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Dublin.

"Alexander Cromwell," Annabeth said.

"Room 102," the receptionist said. The young girl rushed to the elevator, a fear of loss evident on her face. She reached her father's ward, where he'd been taken off the ventilator. "Your father has minutes left," the doctor told her, and she quietly listened. She sat down by her father's side, then cried her heart out. "You can't die," she quietly whispered. Lifting her head up, a determined look on her face, she looked at Artemis, who stood like he had revisited his father years back in the same situation.

"I need a favor," she said.

"What?" he asked her.

"Can Holly heal him?" she asked. "She said she had a magic booster with her. Can't she do this just one last time? Just one favor?" Artemis couldn't say no, for he didn't want anyone else to lose their father, like he'd almost done years back.

"Yes. She can, and she will. She'll have to," he said with conviction. "I'll tell her, so you get the papers ready." Annabeth got up and swiftly left, telling the doctor her mother had called up and told her that they wanted him to be home when he dies. They reached Cromwell Manor, where she put him in his room. Artemis negotiated with Holly.

"But I can't," she said.

"Why not? He is very much alive, and, with help, will be," he replied.

"Artemis, death is inevitable."

"That man is alive."

"But he will die soon."

"And so will his family if you don't save him."

"Artemis, people die every day. That doesn't mean I'd save everyone's life."

"Just this once."

"Why?"

"I can't see someone else lose their father," he said, voice breaking

"Arty people lose their fathers daily. All have to die some or the other day. I can feel him die."

"Why can't you just help one person?"

"Someone whose chances of survival are very slim."

"Someone who matters."

"Not for long. He won't pull through."

"But he matters to me. I think you are forgetting that she saved me from Spiro today, and if it wasn't for her, I would be dead pretty much by now. Just as he doesn't seem to have a chance means you don't help him."

"Artemis, I-"

"Thank you so much for proving how good a friend you are," he said and left, finding Annabeth by the stairs. "Did she agree?" she asked, hopeful.

"I'm sorry, but she didn't. I tried, Annabeth, I really did," he gently said.

"It's all right, Artemis. You did your best. It's just that I have to let go now," she said and broke down. Artemis gently put his arm around the girl for he was able to understand her pain. He'd been through it. He felt angry at his best friend for she was not ready to help just because she felt he didn't have a chance at all at life. After seeing this, Holly understood that Artemis wasn't just bluffing when he said that she mattered, for Artemis would never act this close to anyone who didn't matter to him. She looked up, eyes red and Artemis simply wiped the tears off her face.

"You have to be strong for the people waiting for you at home, Annabeth. Your mother needs her daughter. You can't break down," he said and she simply cried more. "Please don't," he said, for he too was reminded of his own past and was trying to control himself for the sake of her. Seeing Artemis this attached to someone he'd barely known, Holly repented for her words and walked up to Artemis, who'd now left her alone, sensing she needed time. Besides, she could feel the man's body fight back. A strong spirit. He may live, if she helped.

"Happy?" he said, his tone acidic.

"I'll help," she said.

"You better do. Alexander Cromwell doesn't have much time." She went close to the body, whose pulses were still there, and, making a tiny incision in the hand, put her thumbs in and let the magic she'd filled herself with in the meantime. Annabeth saw the healing and quietly got up to enter the room. Her father was breathing normally again.

"Thank you, Holly," she said, gratitude in her voice, hugging the little fairy.

"Thank Artemis," she said, leaving the room. She knew girls tended to give a little more emotional reactions to such things than usual. She did too.

"Thank you so much," she said and hugged him. For a moment, Artemis was taken aback, and when he began to settle to the reaction did he get another unexpected reaction. She gently kissed him on the cheek as a mark of thanks, then left the room to call her mother.

"Father is fine," she said.

"He's been got home. Yes, yes, you better call the Interpol office to announce his return in a few weeks. He'll take over in 4 months hereafter. I'll inform the hospital too."

She then called the hospital. "Queen Elizabeth Hospital. I call regarding Mr. Alexander Cromwell's health. He has recovered; I'd like the hospital to send a set of nurses to supervise him. The payment will be made. Thank you." A call to the family doctor was next. "Hello, Herr Schiller. If you're in the city right now, kindly come over. Father has recovered & I'd prefer the family doctor take care of him. Dankee," she said, ending the call. "We should leave now, for Mother will be reaching. I told her I'm in Munich. We should rather hurry for Fowl Manor, now that we've got to crack a tough nut named Jon Spiro," she said, her calm self again. Holly gaped at her, for she switched from a rattled teenager to an authoritarian in a matter of seconds. "D'Arvit," Holly said. Artemis stepped in the study, a beautiful room containing Gothic, Victorian, as well as slight Romanian and Russian influences. "So, shall we?" she asked him.

"What?" he asked confused.

"Leave for Fowl Manor," she said. "Jon Spiro is waiting in Chicago." He could not believe his eyes and ears. A girl who seemed like she'd lost it all minutes' back, a person whose world had been ripped apart now looked like nothing had ever occurred. "What? We've got to get Spiro? He has the Cube."

"I don't believe this," he mumbled.

"Believe what?" she asked.

"How you can control yourself so easily," he said.

'Years of practice. Now, we don't have time to waste. Irina, have the nurses and Doctor Schiller arrived?" she asked her bodyguard, who nodded.

"Very well; tell him all that I told you & then we leave. If he asks for me, say that the young lady needs time alone."

"Fine, Annabeth; do you really want to do this?" she asked.

"Of course; Spiro has to pay for all the sins he committed, especially what he did to my father. No one escapes as long as I'm there." He very well understood that feeling of retribution, but how she took it in such a calm manner was something quite new to the young prodigy. Certainly he had a lot to learn from this young lady. "I hope the car is waiting at the back?" she asked Irina.

"Yes, Annabeth. Come," she replied and Annabeth simply walked out. He waited around and she turned, sensing he was not coming.

"Are you not coming?" she asked.

"I am. Just taking in the beauty of the room," he replied.

"I know. This study was originally on a Gothic and Victorian outlay, but Mother added the Russian & Romanian influences. You saw the fresco?" she asked; he looked up, a beautiful Greek fresco of the Solar System.

"Hmm; you seem attached to astronomy," he replied. He was too; it was one of his favorite fields for it provided more than ample scope for exploration and for discoveries. There was so much unseen.

"I am; it's my favorite field. I love waking up to the cosmos, reminding me that a lot in life is left unexplored, which must be probed and inquired into. We have a lot to learn."

"That is my opinion of life too. It is so vast, every moment must be spent in learning and achieving."

"True. Today we have to achieve which, as usual, the adults have not. We have to catch Jon Spiro."

"And we will do it."

"We will. Let's leave,," she said and headed out, face set in determination. I have a lot to learn from her, Artemis thought.


End file.
